Honduras Washed Finca El Puente - January 2026
Honduras Washed Finca El Puente
Every once in a while, a coffee comes along that carries a story far bigger than its flavor notes, though this one has plenty of those too. This washed SL28 from Marysabel Caballero and Moisés Herrera is more than a beautiful cup; it’s a window into over a century of Honduran coffee history, a family’s commitment to sustainability, and a region shaped by resilience, biodiversity, and extraordinary care for the land.
Finca El Puente is one of those rare farms where tradition and innovation coexist so naturally that the two become inseparable. And in this particular coffee, grown at 1580 meters in the mountainous community of La Piedrona, Chinacla, you can taste the precision, the patience, and the heart that define this remarkable origin.
Grower: Marysabel Caballero and Moisés Herrera, Finca El Puente
Region: La Piedrona, Chinacla, La Paz, Honduras
Cultivar: SL28
Altitude: 1580 masl
Process: Low Intervention, Washed
Harvest: November 2024 - March 2025
Roast Level: Medium
Roast Body: Mild
Cupping Notes: Mirabelle Plum, Yuzu, Milk Chocolate
A Legacy Carried Through Generations
To understand this coffee, you have to understand the family behind it.
Marysabel Caballero is the fourth generation of her family to grow coffee, a lineage that began in 1907 when her great-grandfather, Don Felipe García, started cultivating coffee in Honduras. Coffee wasn’t just a crop for Don Felipe. It was a lifeline. He grew it, processed it himself, and transported the beans by mule across rugged terrain to El Salvador, where exporters sent it to Germany. His payment often came in the form of essential goods: cloth, tools, fertilizers. He brought these home and sold them in Marcala, creating a small but vital community hub.
Don Garcia's sudden passing at the age of 44 left the farm in the hands of his young son, Arsaces, who stepped into responsibility at an age when most children are still in school. At just fourteen, Arsaces married and began expanding the family’s coffee legacy. Years later, his daughter Sandra and her husband Fabio Caballero purchased farmland from him, laying the foundation for what would eventually become one of the most influential coffee families in Honduras.
Marysabel, daughter of Sandra and Fabio Caballero, grew up in this world; one where coffee wasn’t just an agricultural product, but a family thread woven through generations.
A Land Defined by Culture, Resilience, and Community
Moisés Herrera’s introduction to coffee unfolded differently. Originally from Guatemala, he worked for a coffee exporter before a 1992 trip to Honduras set his life on a new path. He visited Chinacla, a rural municipality in the mountains of La Paz, and became captivated by both the land and the potential of the coffee grown there.
In 1996, he and Marysabel married, joining their histories, their skills, and their shared belief that coffee could be better: farmed better, processed better, understood better. Together, they purchased their first farm, La Maltide, and began what has now become one of the most respected and innovative family operations in Central America.
Over time, their work expanded to more than 50 farms across four municipalities, Chinacla, San José, Marcala, and Santa Ana, each one offering its own microclimate and expression of terroir.
This dispersed approach is unusual and logistically demanding, but the payoff is extraordinary: a portfolio of coffees that reflect the subtle differences of soil, rainfall, elevation, and shade with every sip.
A Land Defined by Culture, Resilience, and Community
Chinacla, home to many of the plots that produce El Puente coffees, is a municipality rich with heritage. Its population of just under 8,000 is largely Lenca, one of the oldest Indigenous groups in Honduras, whose cultural roots are still deeply preserved in food, celebrations, and community traditions.
Coffee is the defining economic backbone of Chinacla. Most families grow it, trade it, or rely on seasonal labor to sustain themselves. Despite being one of the poorest regions in La Paz, it is a place known for hospitality, hard work, and pride, qualities reflected in the coffees that come from its hillsides.
The region’s biodiversity is remarkable. Forests, waterfalls, and ancient caves shape the landscape, and Finca El Puente’s approach to conservation ensures these ecosystems remain intact for future generations.
Environmental Stewardship at the Core of the Farm
Sustainability isn’t a marketing pitch at Finca El Puente. It’s the operating system.
🌱 Soil Health Above All
Every year, soil across the farms is analyzed to understand nutrient needs. Organic fertilizer, produced from cow manure, chicken manure, coffee pulp, and other organic materials, is used to build and maintain a living, biodiverse soil environment.
💧 Water Conservation & Protection
All water used during processing is filtered and cleaned before returning to the environment, protecting the purity of the region’s water sources. In 2020, they redesigned their washing facility to use gravity instead of pumps, significantly reducing water use.
🌳 Forest Preservation
Portions of their land are intentionally left untouched to protect local forests. These areas help stabilize soil, prevent erosion, and maintain essential water cycles.
🍃 No Pesticides — Ever
Rather than relying on chemical inputs, Marysabel and Moisés use shade management, wider tree spacing, and careful pruning to regulate humidity and airflow — natural defenses against fungus, leaf rust, and coffee diseases.
Their approach is holistic, rooted in respect: for the land, for workers, for the product, and for the future of coffee in Honduras.
Pushing Boundaries Through Innovation
In 2012, Marysabel and Moisés began a series of drying experiments that would shape the flavor and longevity of their coffees.
They tested:
Raised African-style beds under shade
Concrete patios
Mechanical dryers (Guardíolas)
Long, low-temperature drying cycles
The result?
A slow, controlled drying method that preserves sweetness and complexity, ensuring the coffee stays fresh long after harvest.
Around the same time, they built their own dry mill, giving them full control from seed to export. Today, they manage 56 different cultivars, including ultra-rare varieties like Mokka and Batian, alongside icons like Geisha, Java, Pacamara, and this month’s featured SL28.
About This Coffee
SL28 is one of the world’s most celebrated coffee varieties, originally developed in Kenya. Known for its clarity, acidity, and brilliant fruit character, it’s rarely seen in Honduras, and even more rarely processed with this level of precision. At 1580 meters above sea level, the SL28 from La Piedrona ripens slowly, developing the layered sweetness and vibrant acidity this variety is known for.
We chose this coffee because it represents "El Puente", or the bridge, between heritage and experimentation.
Between old wisdom and new ideas.
Between a family’s century-long journey and a single cup in your hands.
Marysabel and Moisés represent the best of modern coffee farming: innovative, curious, environmentally responsible, and deeply connected to community. This SL28 is a reflection of all of that, bright, expressive, and unforgettable.
If Roaster’s Choice is about telling the stories of people who elevate coffee, this month’s selection couldn’t be more fitting.
How Do I Get This Coffee?
Fresh Roasted Coffee’s Roaster’s Choice program is your passport to the world’s most captivating coffees, and this month’s journey takes us to the lush, mountainous farms of La Piedrona, Chinacla, Honduras.
Our Honduras Washed SL28 is a radiant, expressive cup, layered with notes of mirabelle plum, yuzu, and creamy milk chocolate. Grown and meticulously processed by Marysabel Caballero & Moisés Herrera at their renowned Finca El Puente, this coffee represents the intersection of heritage, innovation, and environmental stewardship. It perfectly showcases the stunning potential of high-elevation microplots and the Caballero family’s century-long dedication to exceptional coffee.
Order a Roaster's Choice subscription by January 6th, 2026, to experience this coffee for yourself!
Fresh Roasted Coffee LLC offers Roaster's Choice coffees in bagged coffee as well as classic pods. Subscribers can choose from 3-, 6- or 12- month subscription plans.
Ready to savor the unparalleled flavors of this month’s Roaster’s Choice? Limited quantities available, so don’t miss out!
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